Our Kanye West Biography tells you Facts about his Childhood Story, Early Life. Also, Kanye’s Parents, Family, Love affairs, Lifestyle, Personal Life and Net Worth.
The analysis involves Kanye’s life story before fame and his family background. More so, many OFF and ON-Screen little-known facts about him.
Yes, everyone knows he is one of the most successful rappers of his time. However, only a few consider Kanye West’s Biography, which is quite interesting. Now, without further ado, let’s begin.
Kanye West Childhood Story – Early Life and Family Background:
For Biography starters, the American Celeb is best known by the nickname “Yeezy”. Kanye Omari West was born on the 8th day of June 1977. His birthplace is in Atlanta, Georgia, United States.
He was the only child born to his mother, Donda West. Kanye West’s Mum is a teacher of the English language. West was born to his father, Ray West. He is the first black photojournalist for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Kanye grew up in South Shore Chicago (707 miles from his birthplace). He grew up alongside his mother after his parents split when he was only three years old.
Consequently, he spent the better part of his childhood with his mother. And only visited his father during summers.
Growing up on the south shore, Young Kanye developed an early interest in the arts. This includes drawing and writing poetry.
He wrote his first poem at the tender age of 5. And did a follow-up with other interesting pieces, notable of which was his terse description of withered trees in late winter:
‘The Trees are Melting Black’
Recalls Kanye’s mother of her son’s literary prowess.
The bond that Kanye shared with his mother got stronger over the years. That the duo were much considered being an inseparable pair.
Indeed, they were inseparable as Donda West took her son Kanye (aged 10) to China. While there, she taught the English language as part of a university exchange program.
It wasn’t long before they returned to South Shore, where Kanye began rapping in third grade.
By the time he was 13, Kanye had already written his first song and was enjoying studio time with an established producer, NO I.D. who mentored him in sound production.
Kanye West Education:
Notable among Kanye’s educational progress was his high school education at Polaris High School where he graduated in May 1994.
Post-high school education saw Kanye secure a scholarship to study at Chicago’s American University of Arts.
However, he dropped out of college in 2000 to the dismay of his mother, who was a respected Academic. Giving reasons he dropped out of college, Kanye explained that:
“It was drummed into my head that college is the ticket to a good life. but some areer goals dont require college.
it was more about having the guts to embrace who you are, rather than following the path that society has carved out for you”
Kanye West Biography – Career Buildup:
Dropping out of college opened a window for Kanye to embrace his full-fledged passion in music, which he desperately wanted to transform into a career.
He started out by working behind the scenes as a talented music producer whose work was far more than exceptional.
Moving his trade to New Jersey in 2001, Kanye caught the interest of Jay-Z, his first major employer.
The Duo had a profitable working relationship which saw Kanye’s reputation rise with the production of Jay-Z track “This can’t be life”, a track which featured on the 2000 album Dynasty: Roc LA Familia.
2001 was a significant year for Kanye who had his production breakthrough by delivering four songs on Jay-Z’s The Blueprint, a rap album widely considered to be the greatest of all time.
Gangstar Prerequisite:
Kanye West’s breakthrough as a producer did a lot of good to his confidence. For Kanye, Setting sights for greater achievements meant coming out from the backroom to become a rapper.
However, the Roc-A-Fella records for which he worked failed to sign him up as a rapper in view of his posh background.
Speaking to Time Magazine years later, Jay Z, the Co-founder of Roc-A-Fella records recalled that:
“Rappers at the time were known for their hustle, rise from ashes and struggle against all odds to become established in the industry, but there came Kanye who has never had a significant life struggle, it was really hard to see how far he would fare as a rapper”.
Nobody explains it better than a documentarian, Geordie who notes that:
“The big guns of Hip-Hop at the time were people who suffered and made others suffer, people who have been stabbed and shot, had to sell drugs for survival and most depressingly, people who knew what it felt like to have nothing. Kanye, on the other hand, lived with a well-educated mother and was raised the right way. He just wanted to bounce on stage without relating with what his ilk have been through”
However, Roc-A-Fella was forced to sign Kanye as a rapper in 2002, largely because it never wanted to lose its services as a producer.
Kanye West Untold Biography – The Fatal Accident:
Months after Kanye was signed as a rapper he got involved in a fatal accident that almost claimed his life. The incident occurred when Kanye had a head-on collision with another vehicle while driving home after a recording session.
“It was a painful experience. the injuries I sustained dealt with my breathing. There was so much blood and mucus coming out of my mouth.”
The accident did change his physiognomy (facial features) as his jaw was initially badly fixed and had to be wired shut, a development that would later inform his track “Through the Wire”.
Kanye West Bio – Rise To Fame:
Kanye had his breakthrough as a rapper with the release of his debut studio album The College Dropout.
The album, which contained tracks that were mostly written by Kanye while recuperating from the Accident, was released in February 2004.
It peaked at No2 on the Billboard Hot 200 chart which resultantly secured Kanye 10 Grammy nominations of which he won three awards including Best Rap Album. The rest, as they say, is history.
Kanye West Love Life:
Kanye West has had bouts of relationships between the year 1996 to 2012. We bring you a few Notable personalities in Kanye’s dating history.
First among many is Sumeke Rainey, a dark beauty who stuck with Kanye when he was a nobody as far back as 1996.
Unfortunately, she was the victim of Kanye’s rise to fame as she got caught in the tsunamis his career buildup.
Upon becoming a star, Kanye had a relationship with fashion designer Alexis Phifer. The duo got pretty well together that Kanye returned to her for another cycle of relationship after breaking up with Brooke Crittendon.
Brooke Crittendon (pictured below with Kanye) was an executive assistant at MTV News who dated Kanye between 2005-2006. Theirs was the shortest relationship Kanye ever had before returning to Alexis Phifer.
Kanye proposed to Alexis Philer whom he had plans of settling with before the death of his mother sent him to the abyss of dismay, a sad incident that saw the duo split due to irreconcilable differences bordering on Kanye’s mental state.
Recovering from his irredeemable loss Kanye found solace in Amber rose (pictured below with Kayne) whom he hung with between 2008-2010 before meeting his wife, Kim Kardashian.
Kanye West Biography Facts – Marriage To Kim:
Kanye and Kim had been friends for years before they officially started dating in 2012.
While they were friends, Kanye never failed to admit his feelings for Kim (then married to Kris Humphries) who he mentioned in his song “Theraflu”:
“I admit I fell in love with Kim … ‘Round the same time she fell in love with him … That’s cool, babygirl, do your thing … Lucky I ain’t had Jay drop him from the team.”
(Kanye was referring to his pal Jay-Z who owns the New Jersey Nets, the team Kim’s ex-husband Kris Humphries played for.)
Kim officially divorced Kris (whom she had separated from) after she was impregnated by Kanye. It wasn’t long before she gave birth to their first daughter, North West in June 2013.
The birth of North West took her parents’ relationship to a greater height as Kanye proposed to Kim on her 33rd birthday on the 21st of October 2013 at AT&T Park in San Francisco.
Months later, they tied the knot on the 24th of May 2014 at Forte Di Belvedere.
Their relationship was further blessed with two more kids, Saint West (born 2015) and Chicago West (born of a surrogate pregnancy in January 2018).
Kanye West Family Life:
Kanye West was the only child born to his parents. We will bring you details about his family.
About Kanye West’s father:
Ray West is the father of Kanye. Ray largely worked as a photojournalist and was distinguished in his art.
He parted ways with Kanye’s mother in 1980 before getting married to his now-estranged wife, Cheryl Carmichael West.
Kanye became close to his dad after the death of his mother and the duo have stayed close ever since. In fact, Kanye credits his dad for inspiring his creativity in Music and Fashion.
About Kanye West Mother:
Donda West is the mother of Kanye. She was a professor of the English language for decades before retiring in 2004 to assist Kanye music career by serving in the capacity of his agent.
She passed away in November 2007 under controversial circumstances. While some believe she died of complications after going through a series of cosmetic surgery, the coroner believes she died of a pre-existing heart condition.
Donda’s death was a blow to Kanye, to whom she meant the world to. He, however, immortalized his mom by announcing the creation of Donda, a creative design company named after his mother. According to Kanye:
“DONDA is a design company which will galvanize amazing thinkers and put them in a creative space to achieve their dreams and ideas.”
Kanye West Untold Biography – The Doctorate Degree:
Kanye was the recipient of an honorary doctorate from the School of the Art Institute in Chicago. The doctorate came 20 years after Kanye dropped out of Chicago’s American University of Arts.
Although Kanye was nervous at the ceremony which saw him donned in an Academic gown, he managed to give his acceptance speech stressing that he would use the honour to better lives.
Kanye’s wife Kim Kardashian was not present at the ceremony due to business concerns in Brazil. She, however, made a congratulatory tweet to the new Dr.
Dr. Kanye West!!!!!!! I'm so proud of you baby & I know your mom would be so proud too!!!! 🎓 pic.twitter.com/dgcj3uUVvq
— Kim Kardashian (@KimKardashian) May 11, 2015
Kanye West Nicknames:
Kanye has over the course of his successful career adopted many nicknames and aliases, we bring you some of his numerous nicknames and their sources in brackets
Pablo, Yeezy, Yeezus, Ye, Mr West, Kan The Louis Vuitton Don (Kanye – Better Than Yours), The Don (Video), Martin Louis the King, Jr. (Video), KanYeezy (Jay-Z – Lucifer), The LeBron of Rhyme (Kanye – DIAND), K-Rock (Kanye – Drive Slow), Omari / ‘Mari (Kanye – Only One), The Black Zac Efron (Kenny West on the Cleveland Show), Evel Kanyevel (Kanye – Touch the Sky video), Swag King Cole (Kanye – Cold
Kanye West Wife Robbery:
Kanye’s wife was robbed at gunpoint in October 2016 at her luxury apartment in Paris. The thieves who were dressed in police uniform outwitted a concierge at the apartment who let them inside.
He was later handcuffed by the bandits who made their way to Kim’s Flat. They broke into the room holding pointing a gun. Kim was not one to confront armed men as she obliged to their intent of tying her hands and locking her in a bathroom.
The gang made away with £9 million Pounds worth of Jewelry Including the £3.5 million 20 carat diamond engagement ring given to her by Kanye.
It took Kim months to recover from the unfortunate incident. She also avoided events in the French capital because the memories were still fresh. More so, Kim would not be visiting Paris for a very long time.
Reacting to the incident Kanye thanked God for little favours as he notes that:
“I wouldn’t have forgiven myself if the robbery went beyond just stealing Pieces of jewellery. Notwithstanding, I understand the security issues being faced by my family. It’s sometimes depressing to think one that is as famous as the president still has to cater for his own protection”.
Kanye West Personal Facts:
Kanye West has the following traits to his personality
Confidence:
Kanye is one whose confidence made him the star that he is today. When he made his foray in rapping he never hesitated to make known his intention of bringing change to existing norms which he sure did.
The biggest rapper at the time was 50 Cents who came into the limelight wearing a bulletproof vest but Kanye came out wearing a pink polo and dressing up like a teddy bear.
Rappers at the time talked about killing people and selling drugs, Kanye came in waxing lyrical about selling clothes at The Gap (where he had a brief working experience).
In a nutshell, While other rappers at the time rode on their gangsta history, Kanye established a new rap order based on artistry and conscious creativity.
More so the artist has always referred to himself as a creative or Lyrical genius which is quite undisputable given his track record of awesome albums.
Extreme Empathy:
Kanye is one who would go to lengths to canvass support and justice for people who need them. This was evidenced during his appearance alongside comedian Mike Meyers to canvass donations for victims of hurricane Katrina (mostly blacks) on the 2nd of September 2005.
Mike stuck to the script on the teleprompter in making his plea for donations, however, Kanye went rogue by noting that:
“You, I’m gonna adlib a little bit. George Bush doesn’t care about blacks people”.
Indeed, Kanye’s comments were important and correct. In addition, his song Diamonds from Sierra Leone was released in 2005 to detail the plight of children in West African countries, who since 1991 have been forced to mine conflict diamonds and die in civil wars financed by them The music video ends with text that reads, “Please purchase conflict-free diamonds“.
More Personal Facts:
Energetic: Call it willpower or desperation, either way, Kanye is one who makes himself productive. Many believe Kanye played a vital role in helping Jayz stay in business while they both worked together in the good old days.
In fact, the energy with which he carried out his functions as a producer with Roc-a-fella was the reason why the record couldn’t help signing him as a rapper.
Controversial: Kanye seemingly can’t help being controversial with some of his comments which has made many become concerned about his mental health. Notable among those utterances are: 400 years of slavery was a choice, I sold my soul to the devil,
But Beyonce has the best video, I’m a God.
Kanye West Record Label:
Kanye West founded GOOD music, a record label and management company for artists and producers alike. The label boasts of great A-list acts, both past and present including Pusha-T, Big Sean, Kid Cudi, Common, John Legend, Teyana Taylor, Designer, just to name a few.
Kanye has also done some compilation work with fellow GOOD Music artists. “Cruel Summer” was a collaborative effort by members of the GOOD Music family and was released in 2012.
Fashion Line:
Kanye West is a fashion designer whose foray into fashion traces its root to as far back as 2005 when he announced the release of his Pastelle Clothing line.
In 2009, Kayne collaborated with Nike on his “Air Yeezys” line of sneakers. In the same year also, a shoe line from his first joint effort with Louis Vuitton was showcased during the Paris Fashion Week.
He also went on to secure an official deal with Adidas in 2013 and in 2015 as well as released Season 1 of his Yeezy Season clothing collection with Adidas.
The release of the Adidas Yeezy Boosts was met with wild reception as the line was sold out in a matter of minutes. He has continued to have staple releases for his line of fashion wears every since.
Nike Royalty:
Although Kanye’s Yeezy line is in partnership with Adidas, the artists bear a grudge against Nike for not empowering him within the company after he designed a successful Nike shoe. According to Kanye:
I loved Nike. It was heartbreaking for me to have to leave Nike, but they refused to allow me to get a royalty on my shoe and I knew I had the hottest shoe in the world
Political Disposition:
Kanye West showed his avid support for US President, Donald Trump by visiting the then President-elect in his Trump Towers in Manhattan, New York, shortly after Trump’s triumph in the 2016 Presidential elections.
His relentless decision to support Trump has been met with mixed feelings from the black community, music industry and cross-section of popular culture.
Kanye West Biography Facts:
- Kanye detests paparazzi.
- The first thing he bought from the profit of his first album was an aquarium.
- He has once contemplated suicide.
- Kanye is a Christian. He often times attend church. Kanye once attended Jonathan Osteen‘s Lakewood premise.,
- He openly admitted he thought of being becoming an indecent movie star.
- He broke down in tears when performing a song dedicated to his mother titled “hey mama” during his first concert in 2007.
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Cole Daxton
Cole Daxton is a talented Childhood Biography Storyteller with a passion for uncovering the untold stories of some of the world's biggest celebrities. With a keen eye for detail, Cole Daxton has spent years delving into the Early Years and Success Stories of some of the most famous people in the world.
